NIH Exploratory/Developmental Research Grant Program (Parent R21 Basic Experimental Studies with Humans Required) | PA 19 092

Opportunity Information: Apply for PA 19 092

The NIH Exploratory/Developmental Research Grant Program (Parent R21 Basic Experimental Studies with Humans Required), Funding Opportunity Number PA 19-092, is a discretionary NIH grant mechanism designed to help investigators launch early-stage, high-potential research ideas that are still in the exploratory or developmental phase. The R21 format is meant for projects where the main value is in testing a new concept, generating preliminary evidence, or creating and refining a novel approach, rather than completing a large, fully mature program of research. NIH highlights that these projects can be higher risk than more traditional proposals, but they are also the kinds of studies that can open up new directions, produce breakthroughs, or yield new tools, methods, models, or other innovations that significantly influence biomedical, behavioral, or clinical research.

A defining feature of this specific Parent R21 announcement is that it is intended for basic science experimental studies that involve human participants and are considered clinical trials under NIH rules. In practical terms, this means the study prospectively assigns people to one or more conditions, which is another way of saying the investigators actively manipulate an independent variable (for example, changing a task condition, presenting different stimuli, altering an experimental context, or assigning participants to different behavioral or physiological conditions) and then measure biomedical or behavioral outcomes in humans. Even though this meets NIH's definition of a clinical trial, the purpose here is basic research: the goal is to understand fundamental mechanisms or phenomena, not to test a product or intervention for a specific practical or clinical application. NIH points applicants to the framework described in NOT-OD-18-212 for what counts as a "prospective basic science study involving human participants."

This distinction about intent matters for where an application belongs. If the work is designed primarily to understand basic principles in humans without a specific downstream process or product in mind, it fits this FOA. If the study is oriented toward a specific application, such as evaluating a therapeutic, a preventive strategy, a diagnostic approach, a service delivery model, or another targeted product/process outcome, NIH expects applicants to use a different funding opportunity announcement that is labeled as Clinical Trials Required or Clinical Trial Optional, depending on the situation. In other words, this FOA sits in the space where a project looks like an experiment in humans and is formally a clinical trial, but the scientific intent is fundamentally mechanistic and foundational.

Programmatically, the proposed project has to align with the scientific missions and interests of one or more participating NIH Institutes and Centers (ICs). Because NIH is a collection of ICs with different disease areas and scientific portfolios, applicants generally need to ensure that the topic and aims clearly map onto at least one IC's priorities; this alignment is a key factor in whether the application is considered responsive and ultimately fundable.

From an eligibility standpoint, the opportunity is broad and open to a wide range of applicant organization types. Eligible applicants include various levels of U.S. government entities (state, county, city/township, and special district governments), independent school districts, public and state-controlled institutions of higher education, private institutions of higher education, federally recognized Native American tribal governments, and Native American tribal organizations that are not federally recognized tribal governments. It also includes nonprofits with or without 501(c)(3) status (as long as they are not institutions of higher education), for-profit organizations other than small businesses, and small businesses, along with an "other" category that typically captures additional eligible organizational forms under NIH policy. The announcement also explicitly calls out categories of organizations that NIH is encouraging or recognizing as eligible, such as Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISI), Hispanic-serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), faith-based or community-based organizations, eligible federal agencies, regional organizations, U.S. territories or possessions, and non-U.S. entities (foreign organizations).

In terms of funding parameters included in the source data, the listed award ceiling is $200,000. The opportunity is administered by the National Institutes of Health and is associated with multiple CFDA numbers (now commonly referred to under Assistance Listings), reflecting the fact that NIH uses this parent mechanism across many institutes and scientific areas. The original closing date shown in the provided data is May 24, 2020, and the opportunity record creation date is November 28, 2018. Overall, the FOA is best understood as a structured way to get NIH support for early, conceptually driven experiments in humans that are basic science in intent, potentially high impact, and aligned with an NIH Institute or Center's mission.

• The National Institutes of Health in the education, environment, health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "NIH Exploratory/Developmental Research Grant Program (Parent R21 Basic Experimental Studies with Humans Required)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.113, 93.121, 93.173, 93.213, 93.242, 93.273, 93.279, 93.307, 93.361, 93.866.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2018-11-28.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2020-05-24. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $200,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, For-profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses, Others.

Apply for PA 19 092

[Watch] Creating a grant proposal using the step-by-step wizard inside the applicant portal: